The Census of Population and Housing currently provides a 'snapshot' of the Australian population once every five years. A new project, 'Census Data Enhancement', aims to increase the amount of information available from the 2006 Census. This project includes the creation of a Statistical Longitudinal Census Dataset (SLCD), and bringing together the SLCD with ABS and specified non-ABS datasets. The non-ABS datasets are: birth and death registrations, including cause of death data; national disease registers; and the Department of Immigration and Citizenship's settlement database.

Currently the project is investigating the feasibility of creating the SLCD. If feasible the SLCD will be:

created by combining data from the 2006 Census with data from future censuses

created by bringing together the data through statistical techniques rather than matching based on name and address

based on a 5% random sample of the population.

The potential benefits of the SLCD are substantial, as it will provide information on patterns in individual experiences over time and therefore provide insight into the effectiveness of policy or the need for new policy interventions. Studies that may be undertaken include analysis on the pathways taken by migrants in their early years of settlement, particularly in employment.

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